Sir Derek Jacobi | |
|---|---|
 Jacobi in 2022 | |
| Born | 22 October 1938 Leytonstone, Essex, England |
| Alma mater | St John's College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1959–present |
| Works | Full list |
| Partner | Richard Clifford (1979–present) |
| Awards | Full list |
Sir Derek George Jacobi CBE (/ˈdʒækəbi/; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He is known for his work at the Royal National Theatre and for his film and television roles. He has received numerous accolades including a BAFTA Award, two Olivier Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Tony Award. He was given a knighthood for his services to theatre by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994.[1]
Jacobi started his professional acting career with Laurence Olivier as one of the founding members of the National Theatre.[2] He has appeared in numerous Shakespearean stage productions including Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, King Lear, and Romeo and Juliet.[2][3][4] Jacobi received the Laurence Olivier Award, for the title role in Cyrano de Bergerac in 1983 and Malvolio in Twelfth Night in 2009. He also won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing in 1985.
On television, he portrayed Claudius in the BBC series I, Claudius (1976), for which he won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor. He received two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for The Tenth Man (1988), and Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for Frasier (2001). He also took roles in ITV drama series Cadfael (1994–1998), the HBO film The Gathering Storm (2002), the sitcom Vicious (2013-2016), in BBC's Last Tango in Halifax (2012–2020), and the Netflix series The Crown in 2019.[5][6]
Jacobi has acted in numerous films including Othello (1965), The Day of the Jackal (1973), Henry V (1989), Dead Again (1991), Hamlet (1996), Nanny McPhee (2005), The Riddle (2007), My Week with Marilyn (2011), Anonymous (2011), Cinderella (2015), and Murder on the Orient Express (2017). Jacobi portrayed Senator Gracchus in Ridley Scott's Gladiator (2000) and Gladiator II (2024). Jacobi has also earned two Screen Actors Guild Awards along with the ensemble cast for Robert Altman's Gosford Park (2001), and Tom Hooper's The King's Speech (2010).
- ^ Sarah Stanton, Martin Banham, The Cambridge Paperback Guide to Theatre (1996), p. 181
- ^ a b Gilbey, Ryan (17 October 2022). "'I've got a feeling I won't be on stage again': Derek Jacobi on age, ego, Igglepiggle and unrequited love: Interview". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- ^ Wheatley, Jane (18 December 2008). "First knight of nerves for Derek Jacobi and A Bunch of Amateurs". The Times. London. Retrieved 1 May 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "Derek Jacobi Credits, Broadway". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ^ Farndale, Nigel (2 July 2012). "Derek Jacobi: 'I don't mind people having faith. But it ain't for me'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- ^ Framke, Caroline (4 November 2019). "TV Review: The Crown Season 3 Starring Olivia Colman".